Treatment

As a pastor, I have been privy to many of my friend’s personal trauma and trial. I have been both counselor and counselee. Many of life’s experiences call for an outside voice and vision. Often we can’t see fatal flaws until they prove fatal. Many voices echo the tragic statement: if we had only sought counseling earlier.

The first effect that fear had on the human race was to cause them to notice their flaws, and subsequently hide those flaws from God. They hid from God and camouflaged themselves among the trees. The camo they used that day was made from fig leaves and the scripture called the garments aprons. Everyone knows that aprons only cover the front of a person. This is religion’s first ‘front’ before God. In one day, authentic relationship between God and man is transformed into a false front religion. No openness, and definitely no honesty.

The bible says that God didn’t give us the spirit of fear. It is fear that causes somebody to hide from God behind masks and labels. This isn’t God’s will. His will is for us to be like the couple in the garden pre-fall. They were naked and not ashamed (open and honest before God).

Nobody wants to admit that they have issues. The truth is: we all do. Some issues are more apparent and transparent than others. Some of our issues are covered up by the guise of confidence and coherence. We’d rather keep our problems to ourselves. It’s too risky to reveal what really needs to be healed. Conceal don’t confess. If you confess you run the risk of confidences being broken, your issues exposed, and your façade burned up by the fervency of real honesty.

That is the point though. We need to be honest with ourselves. That’s the first step to wholeness.

Let’s get all of our issues out in the open.

I am going to begin a series called Treatment.

This post will serve as a growing Table of Contents for my Treatment series.

I pray through this series that we will see people open up to God and dare to get help.